Samajwadi Party (SP) president Mulayam Singh Yadav, addressing Desh Bachao Desh Banao rally in Varanasi on Thursday targeted BJP prime ministerial candidate and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, and blamed a section of the media for making it look like a contest between SP and BJP in the Lok Sabha polls in UP.

Reacting to Modi’s promise to convert UP into Gujarat following its development model, he said Modi had “blood on his hands.” “With people in my support, Modi will never win. He is a killer of humanity,” claimed Mulayam at the party rally.

Modi, at his rally on Thursday, took on Mulayam and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav saying the ruling SP had “destroyed” Uttar Pradesh. For the third time, SP was holding its rally the same day, Modi addressed a rally in UP.

SP leaders did not fail to remind that the crowd at their rally was bigger.

“There is no contest between me and Modi. BJP did not get any leader from UP to challenge me and thus it has brought Modi from Gujarat against me. Modi wants to turn UP into Gujarat which means that Muslims will be massacred here also,” Mulayam stated.

Mulayam claimed Gujarat development was due to its people. Mulayam defended Akhilesh government terming it as ‘Adarsh Sarkar’ which initiated several welfare schemes for people.

“Taking the plea of Muzaffarnagar riots, some people are attacking the SP government. But can anyone tell which political party has helped Muslims more than SP so far? We have done a lot for the Muslims,” he said.

Mulayam blamed the media for spreading canards against the SP. “Political parties are conspiring to defame the SP. A section of the media has unleashed a false campaign against us,” he said.

“People are angry with both BJP and Congress and have high hopes on us. So it is our responsibility,” he said.